German Patent No. 39 43 005 describes an electromagnetically actuated fuel injection valve, in which a plurality of disk-shaped elements are arranged in the seat area. When the magnetic circuit is excited, a flat valve plate used as a flat armature is lifted from an opposite valve seat plate interacting with it, the valve plate and the valve seat plate jointly forming a valve plate part. A swirl element that sets the fuel flowing to the valve seat in a circular swirling motion is arranged upstream from the valve seat plate. A stop plate limits the axial path of the valve plate on the side opposite the valve seat plate. The valve plate is surrounded by the swirl element with a certain amount of clearance between them; thus the swirl element guides the valve plate to a certain degree. The bottom face of the swirl element is provided with a plurality of tangential grooves, which extend from the outer periphery to a central swirl chamber. Due to the fact that the bottom face of the swirl element rests on the valve seat plate, the grooves have the form of swirl channels.
World Patent 96/11335 describes a fuel injection valve, which has a multidisk pre-swirl atomizer projection on its downstream end. This atomizer projection is provided downstream from a disk-shaped guide element built into a valve seat carrier and a valve seat that is also located on the valve seat carrier, an additional support element holding the atomizer projection in a well-defined position. The atomizer projection is made of two disks or four disks, the individual disks being made of stainless steel or silicon. Therefore, conventional machining operations maybe used in the production of the opening geometries in the disks, such as erosion, punching, and etching. Each individual disk of the atomizer projection is manufactured separately, after which all the disks of the same size are stacked in the desired number to form the full atomizer projection. The atomizer projection extends perpendicularly to the longitudinal valve axis, i.e., it is horizontal, so that injection takes place along the longitudinal valve axis.
German Patent Application No. 196 07 288 describes a multilayer electroplating process for manufacturing perforated plates, which are particularly suitable for use in fuel injection valves. This principle of disk manufacturing by multiple metal electrodeposition of different metallic structures one on top of the other so that a single-piece disk is obtained should be expressly considered part of the disclosure content of the present invention. Microelectroplating in a plurality of levels, layers, or strata is therefore utilized in the manufacture of the swirl disks used here and installed according to the present invention.